Moreover, he gave the Lakers little chance of turning around what thus far has been an extremely disappointing season.

"We have got to get back to playing solid defense," he said at the beginning of his smiling tirade about all things Lakers, according to FOX Sports West. "That will make our offense go. Kobe (Bryant) is not going to ever have trouble scoring. (Pau) Gasol—if we put him in the right position—won't have trouble scoring. Dwight (Howard) can score. So, we can score. But we can't outscore everybody. You have to play defense first. Then you have to go down to the offensive end and score.”

Johnson also seemed to point the finger at new coach Mike D’Antoni, who replaced Mike Brown last month.

"Our transition defense is terrible, and every team is running (over) the Lakers right now because they know they're faster, quicker and more athletic than the Lakers. So, if it takes us to slow the game down, that's what we should do. You know what we're doing—we're speeding it up, putting ourselves in a tougher position. When we're taking (and missing) long 3-point shots, which gives the opposition an opportunity to fast break more.

"So, we have to figure out what's a good shot and what's a bad shot. Also, do we really want to run with everybody when we really don't have runners? That's the key."

The Lakers—who after their offseason moves were deemed a new super team in the NBA—are 9-12, tied with the Trail Blazers with the fourth-worst record in the Western Conference. They’ve lost four of their past five.

"I love the Lakers so much, and I die with every single game they lose. I'm frustrated because I love them so much. And I don't like where we are. I watch the faces, and it's almost like (the players) don't know what they're doing or how to do it.

"The Lakers better understand this: Every team in the league is liking what's happening to the Lakers. We've always had the upper hand on everybody. Now they're coming and saying, 'Wait a minute, we can beat the Lakers now.' We’ve got to rise up to that challenge, and right now we're not."